Methods of instruction[edit]

Explaining[edit]
Main article: Lecture
Explaining, or lecturing, is the process of teaching by giving spoken
explanations of the subject that is to be learned. Lecturing is often
accompanied by visual aids to help students visualize an object or
problem. Explaining may meet the needs of auditory or visual
learning preferences[clarify] but often fails to meet the needs of
individuals with other learning preferences[clarify], such as kinesthetic
or social learners[clarify].[citation needed]
Demonstrating[edit]
Main article: Demonstration (teaching)
Demonstrating is the process of teaching through examples or
experiments. For example, a science teacher may teach an idea by
performing an experiment for students. A demonstration may be
used to prove a fact through a combination of visual evidence and
associated reasoning.
Demonstrations are similar to written storytelling and examples in
that they allow students to personally relate to the presented
information. Memorization of a list of facts is a detached and
impersonal experience, whereas the same information, conveyed
through demonstration, becomes personally relatable.
Demonstrations help to raise student interest and reinforce memory
retention because they provide connections between facts and realworld applications of those facts. Lectures, on the other hand, are
often geared more towards factual presentation than connective
learning.
Collaborating[edit]
Main article: Collaboration
Collaboration allows students to actively participate in the learning
process by talking with each other and listening to other points of
view. Collaboration establishes a personal connection between
students and the topic of study and it helps students think in a less
personally biased way. Group projects and discussions are examples
of this teaching method. Teachers may employ collaboration to
assess student's abilities to work as a team, leadership skills, or
presentation abilities.[1]
Collaborative discussions can take a variety of forms, such
as fishbowl discussions. After some preparation and with clearly
defined roles, a discussion may constitute most of a lesson, with the
teacher only giving short feedback at the end or in the following
lesson.
Evolution of teaching methods[edit]
Ancient education[edit]
About 3000 BC, with the advent of writing, education became more
conscious or self-reflecting, with specialized occupations such
as scribe and astronomer requiring particular skills and
knowledge. Philosophy in ancient Greece led to questions of
educational method entering national discourse.

In his literary work The Republic, Plato described a system of

instruction that he felt would lead to an ideal state. In his dialogues,
Plato described the Socratic method, a form of inquiry and debate
intended to stimulate critical thinking and illuminate ideas.
It has been the intent of many educators since, such as the Roman
educator Quintilian, to find specific, interesting ways to encourage
students to use their intelligence and to help them to learn.
Medieval education[edit]
Comenius, in Bohemia, wanted all children to learn. In his The World
in Pictures, he created an illustrated textbook of things children
would be familiar with in everyday life and used it to teach
children. Rabelais described how the student Gargantualearned
about the world, and what is in it.
Much later, Jean-Jacques Rousseau in his Emile,
presented methodology to teach children the elements
of science and other subjects. During Napoleonic warfare, the
teaching methodology of Johann Heinrich
Pestalozzi of Switzerland enabled refugee children, of a class
believed to be unteachable[by whom?], to learn. He described this in his
account of an educational experiment at Stanz.[citation needed] He felt the
key to have children learn is for them to be loved.[citation needed]
19th century - compulsory education[edit]
Main article: Prussian education system
The Prussian education system was a system of
mandatory education dating to the early 19th century. Parts of
the Prussianeducation system have served as models for the
education systems in a number of other countries,
including Japan and the United States. The Prussian model required
classroom management skills to be incorporated into the teaching
process.[2]
20th century[edit]
Newer teaching methods may incorporate television, radio,
internet,multi media and other modern devices. Some
educators[who?] believe that the use of technology, while facilitating
learning to some degree, is not a substitute for educational methods
that encourage critical thinking and a desire to learn. Inquiry
learning is another modern teaching method. A popular teaching
method that is being used by a vast majority of teachers is hands on
activities. Hands-on activities are activities that require movement,
talking, and listening, it activates multiple areas of the brain. "The
more parts of your brain you use, the more likely you are to retain
information," says Judy Dodge, author of 25 Quick Formative
Assessments for a Differentiated Classroom (Scholastic, 2009).[3]